Our in-store colleagues really know their stuff, and our gaming experts are… well… experts! We wanted to pick their brains about what they’re playing and get their top tips and tricks.
Before jumping into it, we want to say a massive thank you to Ed, Shaun and Will for taking the time to share their current gaming faves with us.
What are you playing at the moment?
I’m playing Disco Elysium on the Xbox One. It’s a point and click detective RPG. It was written by Robert Kurvitz, an Estonian novelist and scooped up loads of awards when it was released on PC back in 2019. So I’ve been waiting a while to give it a go and am loving it!
What’s your favourite part of the game?
It’s hard to say as it’s a bit of a work of art. I’ve always loved point and click adventures like Monkey Island or Broken Sword. So, I like the mechanic of exploring the world and trying different things.
But it’s the world building that makes it, along with the art style and soundtrack. It’s set in Revachol, which is a fictional, weather-beaten seaside town with a turbulent past. It also has an incredibly evocative soundtrack by Sea Power.
Like most RPGs you can put points into skills as you make progress, but in this case the skills are aspects of your personality and worldview. And because you can develop your character in almost any way you want, there’s not really a right or wrong way to play it. It’s an incredibly original idea.
How would you describe it in 3 words?
Hilarious. Absurd. Melancholy.
Top tips for other Disco Elysium players?
Talk to everyone. Try everything. The classic point and click formula. If you get stuck, there’s probably an article of clothing or consumable that you can use to boost your skills in one area or another. If you can’t get past a checkpoint, just leave it and come back to it later. Things will change in ways you can’t predict.
What are you playing at the moment?
Recently I've been playing a new title on Xbox Games Pass Ultimate called "Astroneer" with my friends! It's a fun open world exploration game which we can all work together on.
What’s your favourite part of the game?
My favourite part of the game has to be the art style and polygon nature that makes it visually appealing. Alongside easy-to-learn gameplay mechanics and multiplayer, it’s allowed for hours of fun.
How would you describe it in 3 words?
Fun learning curve.
Top tips for other Astroneer players?
Make sure to have plenty of tethers to allow further exploration and look out for the gravity globe, it's a game changer!
What are you playing at the moment?
I’m currently playing The Callisto Protocol on PS5. It’s a new survival horror game from the creator of Dead Space. So, you know you’re in for a creepy sci-fi experience right from the start.
You play as a space trucker who’s wrongfully imprisoned in Black Iron – a prison on one of Jupiter’s moons. But there’s an outbreak. And the place is now overrun by infected space zombie prisoners. Lovely. It’s not going to get a good review on Trip Advisor, I’ll tell you that much.
What’s your favourite part of the game?
It’s got to be the sound design. The audio is incredibly good. And that’s 50% of a great horror experience, right? Weapons boom. Monsters snarl. Machinery shudders. Plus, you can hear all manner of nasties crawling about under the floor and in the walls. Sounds like the perfect game to play just before you go to sleep, doesn’t it?
Just make sure you’re playing with a decent pair of headphones on. That way, you’ll be able to really appreciate it all. And switch off the lights too!
How would you describe it in 3 words?
Shoot the tentacles.
Top tips for other The Callisto Protocol players?
Make sure to spend some credits on upgrading your GRP (or grip – ha, see what they did there). This gravity control gauntlet lets you grab enemies and fling them about like a low rent jedi. Chuck them off a ledge. Throw them onto a spike. Drop them down a hole. It really makes light work of the shambling hordes.
